Motif Magazine

01/06/2025

Vudu Sister has four days to meet their KickStarter goal! Help them out at the link down below!

A dark, gothic folk album with violin, cello, acoustic baritone guitar inspired by mythology and Lovecraftian horror.

12/26/2024

With Mayor Brett Smiley at the ceremonial lighting of the Chanukiah on the second night of Chanukah, then inside for food and drinks.

12/25/2024

Happy holidays everyone!! We hope you all have a beautiful day today and that you've had a beautiful holiday season! We're celebrating by looking back at our Santa Stroll from this year, which we already can't wait to do again in 2025! See you all next year! 🥂🍻🍾🎉🎁🎅

12/24/2024

On this Christmas Eve, for your enjoyment we recall this quaint 2015 holiday story from our archives.

It was, fittingly, early December when I began to contemplate my own mortality. There was always a vague awareness that nothing lasts forever, but I am descended from a family of hardy stock, a number crossing the century mark. Bad luck can fell anyone, but in my relative youth I had no expectation

12/23/2024

Our mixologist is back with another cocktail creation! Get cozy this winter/ holiday season with a Mexican Old Fashioned, combining mezcal, chocolate bitters, and cinnamon chili syrup. For the exact recipe, go to the link down below to read! ☕️🔥
https://motifri.com/holiday-drink-recipes/
Art by

Feeling stressed about finding the perfect holiday gift for your bestie who has everything? Exhausted from listening to Uncle Joe talk about NASCAR? This cocktail is bold and no-nonsense, designed for those "too much" holiday moments. Smoky mezcal gives this Old Fashioned a strong, spirited kick, co

12/22/2024

Mews Tavern is a treasure for those in Rhode Island and beyond. December and January are months not to miss at Mews and in our recent food and drinks section article, we explore why. Read at the link down below! 🍻🍸🍕🍔
https://motifri.com/revisiting-something-old-or-new-this-winter-a-spotlight-on-south-countys-mews-tavern/

In the winter, I often find myself craving comfort. When it comes to eating out, I tend to go to the familiar, steadfast places, the ones that rarely change. As a South Kingstown native, that place for me is the Mews Tavern. It’s a neighborhood bar with classic American foods, an impressive beer l...

12/21/2024

Winter for many is the time to stay in and await the day the sun sets later and the temperature reaches a comfortable number. To help pass the time, picking up a book can help transport someone away from desire to have April be here. We’ve rounded up ten books for you to read this winter season to help you escape the dark and cold of little Rhody! Find them at the link in bio! 📚🤓☕️
https://motifri.com/top-10-books-to-read-in-2024/

The One, John MarrsRating: 5 stars.Set in the UK, Marrs’ The One paints a near future where a company called “Match Your DNA” promises to pair you with your genetic soul mate. Those interested send a spit swab over to the company with hopes of being “Matched,” but many find that the price ...

12/20/2024

Celebrate New Year’s Eve and support Providence at two different NYE Charity Casino events downtown! Take your pick during “New Year Never Dies” and head to the “Casino Royal Charity Casino Gala at the Reserve on Dorrance, “Diamonds Are in the Forever” Charity Casino Party in the Ballroom at the G, or head to both!

12/20/2024

Baby it’s cold outside and for some people, it’s just not cold enough. In our recent issue, we discuss the benefits of getting a little cold outside this winter. Whether that be through cold plunges, holding an ice cube, or applying an ice pack, there are pros to dropping your body temperature. Read at the link in our bio ❄️🥶
https://motifri.com/brrrr-dont-be-a-baby-benefits-of-getting-out-in-the-cold/

With temperatures sinking and some flurries spotted, we’ve reached the time of year when cozying up inside becomes second nature. But what if spending a few more moments outdoors has more to offer than our shivers might suggest? Believe me, I’m in favor of staying snug — I write to you from be...

12/18/2024

Hello all,
It has taken us almost a week to write this post, in large part due to us reeling from the absolute blast that was Thursday night. The Santa Stroll was such a fun time and we're so excited to share more video and photo from the event, however we must thank all those that helped make the night possible. Thank you first and foremost to the amazing locations that allowed us to stroll in and out and the people behind those venues. Alchemy, Nick-A-Nee's, Provy, and Mirabar were all amazing and hospitable and we can't thank them enough for all they did to help make the stroll what it was. Thank you to the Providence Drum Troupe for bringing the spirit of the holidays with you now for three years in a row. We can't imagine this event happening without you guys! Thank you to our volunteers Alissa Marr, Bob and Mary Lyons, Zack Koehler, Scout Lyons, Brandon Smith, Kiara Nieves and Mara Hagen. Thank you immensely to Trinity Brewhouse and Nice Slice for the delicious food and being such big supporters of the arts and our wacky ideas! Thank you to our videographer Eric Barao for capturing the night and for making one of the game contraptions. Thank you to Olivia Lunger for all the design work you did for promotion of the event! Thank you Mike Ryan for all your help and thank you to our Event Manager TESS LYONS for making the event happen! Till next year folks, we can't wait!

12/18/2024

Our final issue of 2024 is rolling out today by the tens of thousands with a focus on the future: environment, climate, composting, immigration. Along with our usual coverage of music and arts, we have a wide-ranging interview with US Sen. Jack Reed. And, of course, many pages of listing of things to do.

12/12/2024

Dark Star Orchestra
On Sale Soon
Date
March 12, 2025
Event Starts
7:30PM
Availability
December 13 at 10:00 AM
Wednesday Mar 12 7:30PM

Performing to critical acclaim for over 20 years and over 3000 shows, Dark Star Orchestra continues the Grateful Dead live concert experience.
Their shows are built off the Dead's extensive catalog and the talent of these seven fine musicians. On any given night, the band will perform a show based on a set list from the Grateful Dead's 30 years of extensive touring or use their catalog to program a unique set list for the show. This allows fans both young and old to share in the experience. By recreating set lists from the past, and by developing their own sets of Dead songs, Dark Star Orchestra offers a continually evolving artistic outlet within this musical canon. Honoring both the band and the fans, Dark Star Orchestra's members seek out the unique style and sound of each era while simultaneously offering their own informed improvisations.

Dark Star Orchestra offers much more than the sound of the Grateful Dead, they truly encapsulate the energy and the experience. It's about a sense of familiarity. It's about a feeling that grabs listeners and takes over. It's about that contagious energy...in short, it's about the complete experience and consistent quality show that the fan receives when attending a Dark Star Orchestra show.

For us it's a chance to recreate some of the magic that was created for us over the years. Even for Deadheads who can say they've been to a hundred shows in the 90s, we offer something they never got to see live.

Rob Barraco, Keyboardist and Vocalist

Dark Star Orchestra has performed throughout the entire United States, including a sold out debut at Colorado’s Red Rocks Park & Amphitheater, plus shows in Europe and the Caribbean with the band touching down in seven different countries. DSO continues to grow its fan base by playing at larger venues for two and even three-night stands, as well as performing at major music festivals including Bonnaroo, Milwaukee's SummerFest, The Peach Music Festival, Jam Cruise, Wanee Festival, SweetWater 420 Festival, Mountain Jam, and many more.

In addition to appearing at some of the nation's top festival, Dark Star Orchestra hosts its own annual music festival and campaign gathering, titled the "Dark Star Jubilee", currently in its eighth year where DSO headline all three nights and are joined by a mix of established and up and coming national touring acts. Beyond the shores of the United States, DSO has taken its internationally-acclaimed Grateful Dead tribute to the beaches of Jamaica in the dead of winter for the past six years, with their event appropriately titled 'Jam in the Sand'. Featuring an ocean-side stage, DSO sets up camp to perform shows for four nights along the tropical sands of an all-inclusive resort, selling out the event each year for hundreds of lucky attendees.

Fans and critics haven't been the only people caught up in the spirit of a Dark Star show. The band has featured guest performances from six original Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, Vince Welnick, Tom Constanten and even toured with longtime Dead soundman, Dan Healy. Other notable guests have included Mike Gordon and Jon Fishman of Phish, Keller Williams, Warren Haynes, Steve Kimock, Peter Rowan, Ramblin' Jack Elliot and many more.

"For us it's a chance to recreate some of the magic that was created for us over the years," keyboardist and vocalist Rob Barraco explains."We offer a sort of a historical perspective at what it might have been like to go to a show in 1985, 1978 or whenever. Even for Deadheads who can say they've been to a hundred shows in the 90s, we offer something they never got to see live."

12/11/2024

Here is the route we'll be taking and the order of locations in case you miss the first stop and would like to join in with us a little later!

12/09/2024

Here's what to expect during our Santa Stroll happening THIS THURSDAY! Tickets at the link below!
https://square.link/u/rh5aGepu

12/09/2024

Is snowboarding better in the East Coast or West Coast? A debate among winter sport lovers is discussed in our recent issue, the Winter Guide. Read what our writer, who has ample experience snowboarding on boat coasts, has two say at the link down below!

Most snowboarders will laugh at the thought of “comparing” the East Coast to the West Coast. The western mountains are drastically bigger, and they get a lot more snow. The runs are longer and there are wide open bowls full of cliff drops with perfect landings. You can explore endless tracts of ...

12/08/2024

Exercising outside doesn't need to end just because the Winter season has arrived. We give some tips - and list some of the benefits - regarding running the wintertime, specifically in Providence. Read at the link down below!

Despite the recently warmer-than-expected autumn temperatures, we are all aware of the impending December cold that is slated to come upon us in just a few weeks. As the seasonal depressive disorder starts to make its rounds, it is essential that we maintain as many healthy habits as possible. One o